Karaoke
by rogueandkurt
Summary: It was Prentiss who chose the bar. It was Morgan who suggested a game of 'I Never'... Oneshot. Teamfic. SemiReidCentric.


**17. Karaoke**

**Author: **rogueandkurt

**Rating:** K+

**Fandom:** Criminal Minds

Alright, let me start by saying that I know there's another C.M. fic on here called 'Karaoke Night' that hovers around a similar topic. I had not read that story when I wrote this four months ago, and any similarity between the two is purely accidental and unintentional. I mean no harm to the other author (but go read the other fic too - it's pretty good).

This is just a silly teamfic to counteract the angsty ones I've been posting recently. I hope it makes you smile.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Criminal Minds, or the rights to the song 'Summer Nights'.

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It was customary for all of the members of the BAU to unwind after a particularly hard case by going out to a bar together. Unfortunately, the small Colorado town their most recent case had taken place in was decidedly short on bars. The team was faced with the unhappy prospect of remaining in their hotel for the night as they waited for the snowstorm delaying their flight home to pass. 

It was Prentiss who finally suggested a place that she'd overheard two of the local police officers discussing earlier that day. Not having many other options, the team agreed to make the half-hour drive to 'Johnny's Place', subsequently piling themselves into the two rental SUVs. Reid was stuck in the back, as usual, and JJ joined him partially out of pity. Garcia and Morgan shared the back of the other van, the former having been somewhat reluctantly dragged into the field for the case. Hotch and Gideon drove, making good time as they braved the snow-covered roads of the rural town. Eager to leave the cold winds behind, the BAU rushed into the dingy-looking building and were met with the surprising revelation that 'Johnny's Place' was actually a karaoke bar. They shrugged, none of them willing to search the rest of the town for another option, and picked out a booth for themselves.

It was Gideon who left early - possibly unnerved by the way Garcia was eyeing the karaoke machine with a scheming smile on her face. He departed in spite of the groups' protests, citing a long day and an early start the next morning. He called a cab, not wanting to leave the team short a vehicle, and soon their group was down to six. They made Reid buy the next round.

It was Morgan who suggested the game of 'I Never', laughing as Reid confusedly denied any knowledge of the rules. JJ quickly explained them, eager for a lighthearted game to take her mind off the horrors of the day. The rules were simple enough for the genius, who already looked rather excited to play.

It was Hotch who suggested that they play the game backwards, allowing those who'd 'never' to take a drink instead. Everyone knew that it was to give Reid a fair chance, though nobody said it outloud. It worked, and before long, the young genius was quite inebriated, to everyone's amusement. JJ - who, it had been determined early on, was a bit of a lightweight when it came to heavy liquor - wasn't far behind him.

It was Hotch who stopped drinking first, he and Morgan both switching over to soft drinks to ensure they were sober enough to drive.

It was, surprisingly, Prentiss who asked the question, smiling widely as both JJ and Reid took a drink, showing that they'd never done karaoke before. The media liaison shrugged and giggled in a decidedly uncharacteristic way, commenting that the town she'd grown up in was too small for karaoke bars. The young profiler merely shook his head, making himself dizzy in the process. The list of things he'd yet to try was long indeed.

It was Garcia who, knowing how tipsy and increasingly suggestible they both were, recommended they try it. It took very little convincing, and soon both junior agents were standing on the small makeshift stage with microphones in their hands, grinning openly as the other members of the BAU cheered from their booth.

It was JJ who picked the song - 'Summer Nights' from Grease - loudly confiding her teenage crush on John Travolta to a red-faced Reid.

It was Reid who surprised everyone by being a halfway decent singer, even while drunkenly stumbling over the lyrics and failing at his attempt to imitate JJ's version of 'the twist'. It was decided that his coordination, poor to begin with, was certainly not aided by alcohol.

It was Hotch who ordered the next round - soft drinks and coffee for everyone, in an effort to ease the flight home. Garcia, Morgan, and Prentiss continued their now-sober game of 'I Never', deciding that Reid and JJ had probably had enough of it for the night. JJ fell into a light doze right around the time that Morgan was admitting he'd never gone to Disney World.

It was Reid who found himself being slipped a phone number by one of the bar's other patrons, an older woman who whispered in a husky voice how much she adored singers. Morgan snorted Coke out of his nose as he watched the 'Cougar' hit on Reid. He nearly choked on the next mouthful as Reid smiled almost flirtatiously, tucking the number into his pocket and loudly thanking her in front of the rest of the team, who were struggling to control their laughter.

It was Morgan who explained the number to a very confused and hung-over Reid six hours later as they boarded the plane back to Virginia. The young genius frowned, blinking continuously as his partner tried to convince him that he'd promised to take the Cougar out dancing next Friday.

It was Prentiss who regaled Gideon with the musical exploits of the two junior agents, Hotch and Garcia filling in where necessary. JJ and Reid did their best to ignore the storytelling, red-faced as Morgan reenacted their dance moves for everyone.

And it was Reid who called for a team-wide ban of 'Reverse I Never', which was promptly and unanimously traded for a moratorium on alcohol-induced karaoke.

_Fin._

* * *

Like I said - silly. I know Garcia doesn't really do the whole 'in the field' bit, but I couldn't let the other members of the BAU party _without_ her, because... well... it's just not as fun. 

Anyways, I hope people enjoyed this one. I'll have another one up in a bit.

Before you go, please take a moment of your time to leave a review! I enjoy getting feedback on my fics, bad or good.

Keep Smiling! ;)

rogueandkurt


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